I didn’t shower for 30 days postpartum thanks to this practice

"I'm living out my  dreams."

A new mum says she is practising "postpartum confinement," receiving food, support and care from her mother-in-law and refraining from showering for a month so she can "rest."

Samantha Lee has taken to TikTok to document the 30 days, alongside her MIL and husband, Aloysius Lee, as she adheres to his Chinese family tradition of confinement.

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Image: TikTok

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The 30-day postpartum confinement 

After the arrival of their one-month-old son, Samantha's mother-in-law, Alicia, helped by cooking delicious, fresh meals every day and looking after their baby so that Samantha could focus on self-care and healing.

She also followed the 'no showering' tradition for a month, as it's believed that water can lower body temperature. 

You're not meant to touch water either so her husband and MIL take charge of bathing the baby.

In terms of drinking water, she's only meant to drink herbal tea - so she has about 2-3L of that per day to make sure she stays hydrated.

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Aloysius, who has Chinese Malay heritage, bought food packages from Malaysia containing traditional herbs, teas, and foods typically given to a new mother during the first 30 days.

Despite Samantha staying in the hospital for two days, Alicia and Aloysius took her homemade meals that stuck to the confinement diet of foods that would benefit the new mum.

More traditions

In her TikTok series titled "White girl living out her postpartum confinement dreams", she documents all of her meals, including eating liver soup, and in another, medicinal pills called Bak Foong Yin to "strengthen her uterus."

Another clip shows Samantha eating "ginger turmeric chicken" and partaking in some gentle movement and breathing exercises so she can "reconnect with her postpartum body."

Pig trotter soup is another delicacy on the menu, which is only to be eaten by women as it supposedly gives mean rashes. 

Image: TikTok

Speaking of rashes, her MIL is seen in one video washing the baby in Guinness beer to "get rid of rashes" which is what her grandmother used to do to her.

"We never ask questions. We just do it," Alycia laughs.

In the comments, the jealousy was palpable among Samantha's followers.

"I wish I was in confinement!" someone wrote.

Another said: "Okay, this looks seriously incredible!!"

"The love and care from your family is so nice to see," someone else wrote.

"Your mum-in-law seems like an amazing woman! Well done to both of you," another follower concluded.

Originally published as I didn’t shower for 30 days postpartum thanks to this practice